Danger Drug Discovered In Scotland For The First Time

A drug said to be the world’s most addictive substance, which has torn apart communities in the United States, has been found by police in Scotland for the first time.

A small amount of crystal meth, a substance known to cause psychosis and which brings huge social costs, has been recovered by the Northern Constabulary.

Experts have long feared the emergence of the drug in Scotland, following epidemics in the US, Australia, the Czech Republic and elsewhere in recent years.

Despite increasing reports of “low-level” use among hard-core drug addicts throughout the country, police had yet to encounter the substance. Now, the recovery of a small amount of the drug by police in Lerwick, Shetland, has confirmed its arrival in this country.

The haul has renewed fears that crystal meth could join home-grown cannabis and crack cocaine in the ranks of emerging illegal drugs that bring personal and social problems, including crime and health costs.

Crystal meth was described by one drugs worker as “mind-scrambling”. It causes severe physical and mental health problems.

Meth laboratories have spread rapidly across the US, causing an epidemic. In Australia, the drug has caused a huge strain on health services.

Crystal meth is highly addictive and its effects are thought to last longer than most other drugs, making it potentially more appealing to addicts looking for a bigger “high”. To reflect its danger, the drug was reclassified from “B” to “A” in January.

Detective Willie MacColl, the national drug co-ordinator for the Scottish Crime and Drug Enforcement Agency, said the extent to which crystal meth was being used was “very unclear”.

He revealed that police were now being trained in how to carry out raids on meth labs, as the chemicals used are highly volatile and can explode.

“What we have at the moment is low-level, anecdotal evidence that something is there,” he said. “It is difficult to distinguish whether people are talking about crystal meth or crystal MDMA [a form of Ecstasy]. What we need is more information from the public about what is really going on.

“This recovery obviously confirms that it is out there in the community.”

It has been feared that crystal meth could surface first in the North-east, where drug dealers have introduced heroin and crack cocaine to prostitutes and other drug users.

Detective Inspector Malcolm MacLeod, head of the Grampian Police’s drug squad, said there were indications that crystal meth was “circulating locally”, although no seizures had been made.

Martin Barnes, the chief executive of the charity DrugScope, said that the number of arrests related to crystal meth in the UK was minimal.

He went on: “Police believe that the low prevalence is in part due to the availability of cheap cocaine. However, after the experience of other countries in which crystal meth has become a problem, the police are acting swiftly to counter the drug.”

SKIN-CRAWLING EFFECTS

THREE times as addictive as cocaine, long-term abuse of crystal meth sends the body into a debilitating decline.

The physical effects of the drug, also known by its street name “ice”, include heart palpitations, blurred vision, extended wakefulness and damage to the brain, lungs and liver. The drug also compromises the body’s immune system.

Outwardly, addicts suffer from severe weight loss, excessive sweating and, due to intense cravings for sweet foods, abnormally rapid tooth loss, known as “meth mouth”.

The drug adversely affects the user’s vision, judgment, co-ordination and reflexes. Addicts become violent, depressed, self-destructive, and prone to psychoses and hallucinations. The drug also induces a condition known as “formication”, which is the sensation of ants or other insects crawling under the flesh, leading to compulsive scratching of sores.